a r t -5 This attention to the’great luminaries and the liars, rendered it
s c ie n c e ' necefl"ary to diltinguilh each o f them by a peculiar name. Th e fun
has the name of Era, and themoon.that o f Mdrama, the planet Venus
is called Touroba, Jupiter Matarse, and SaturnNa-ta-heea. Th e fe-
v;en liars have the name o f E-whettoo-.owbda,* Sirius or the Dog-ltar
Ta-whetioo-rba y the liars forming the belt o f Orion are named
E-wbeftoo-mabao j the milky way is known by the denomination of
5Tr-eiya, and a comet or blazing ftar by that o f E-wbettoo-werra ;
the natives have alfo a name for a Ihooting liar and Call it Epao,
and think that it is an evil genius paffing rapidly through the
heavens. Th e y are doubtlefs acquainted with otherHars, ■ than
thofe here enumerated, and by their rifing or fetting are enabled
to judge o f the time of the night, and likewife of the points of the
heayens though they have no compafs. It is very well known that
their imperfedt altronomical knowledge is only applicable to the
parts o f the world which are near to O-Taheitee, as the appearances
would
* To give the literal fignificatiqn of the names of all the ftars, is a talk too difficult for
the imperfeft knowledge of the Taheitean language I am matter of, however I ’ll give here
the interpretation of fuch names as .are obvious to me. The (even ttare are called E-wbettoo-
on-baa, or the Jiars of the neft; probably the natives abttra&ed from the polition of the ftars,
the figure of a bird’s neft. The Dog-ftar Ta-nuhcltoo rod is the great Jlar, and this name' is
very properly given. The milky way or Teems to fignify a fail. A cornet or
E-nuhsttoo-'wcrra fignifies the burning Jtar,
would be greatly altered at a moderate dillance from their ille, and
be of no ’ further ufe to them. We found however upon
examination, that this moderate lhare o f allronomy and the*
ilightnefs o f their embarkations did not hinder them from
acquiring a. very extenlive knowledge o f the illands in the
neighbourhood. T u p^ y a the moll intelligent man that ever wast
met with by any European navigator in thelè ifles, had himfelf
been ten or twelve days fail to the Wellward o f O-Raiedsa ; which
according to Capt. Cook’s computation, * would make 400 leagues,
or .about twenty degrees of longitude. This man when on board
the Endeavour, gave an account o f his ’ navigations and'
mentioned the names o f more than eighty ifles which he knew,
together with their fize and fituation, the greater part o f which he-'
had vifited, and having foon perceived the meaning and ufe of
charts, he gave direltions for making one according to his-account,.
and always pointed to the part o f the heavens, where each iflè was-
fituated, mentioning at the fame time that it was- either- larger or
fmaller than Taheitee, and likewife whether it was- high or low,
whether it was peopled or not, adding now and then fome,
curious accounts relative to fome o f them.. O f this chart-
a copy was obligingly communicated tom e by. M r . . Pickerfgdl,.
Lieutenant.
jg
1
A R T S
AND
SCI E NCES
Hawkefworth, vol. ii. p . 278.